


Tale of Four

by NaikoKanashi



Category: XCOM (Video Games) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe, Character Death, Friendship, Gen, Original Character(s), POV First Person
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-31
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-05 03:36:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15855420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NaikoKanashi/pseuds/NaikoKanashi
Summary: Alice has her entire world changed as she's thrown into the midst of the first terror attack. Surrounded by strangers, her life takes a drastic turn as she is taken in by the previously unknown organisation, XCOM, which is tasked with the protection of the Earth from extraterrestrial threats. In this new world, there are many questions; the most important of all: What happens next?





	1. Beginnings

As I walked down the paved pathway, I felt butterflies flutter inside me as I was about to meet those who I'd only seen pictures of. The people I would spend the next two years of my life with. The path seemed to stretch on forever as if it felt the doubt eating at me. What if they hate me? What if I got something wrong?

Then, I steeled myself. “Worrying about it won't make it go away, Alice,” I told myself. From the weird looks I was attracting, I deduced that I had accidently said that louder than I had meant to. With a nervous giggle, I hurried away.

The blossoming trees that ran alongside the path, waved in the wind as I looked around, smiling as I admired the staggering beauty of the park. Surprisingly, there weren’t too many people considering that it was a bright, sunny Saturday. There were a few families and couples dotted around, enjoying the summer sun. I felt a twinge of sadness as I walked, missing these times with my family which seemed like a lifetime ago despite really being only 1 or 2 years ago.

As I neared the meeting point, I noted that, thankfully, I wasn't the first to arrive. I recognised Hannah from her picture, with her shoulder length chestnut brown hair, her youthful-looking face and, most of all, her adorable cat-eared beanie that she seemed to always wear, even during the perfect weather we were currently experiencing. I also noticed how she seemed to buzz with energy and seemed incapable of keeping herself still for even a second. Even from here, I saw her playing with her hair and constantly tapping the wooden bench she was sitting on. Looks like I've found my alarm clock.

As I got closer, she noticed me and waved excitedly, her eyes lighting up as I approached. I walked up to her, the butterflies intensifying with every step.  
We stood next to each other, both wanting to break the silence but not knowing the right way to do it. Hannah went first.

“Hi, Alice. I'm Hannah, as you already know. I may be a little…” she paused as she looked for a word “…excitable, but I'm going to try to be the best roommate ever!” She looked expectantly me and I took that as my cue to introduce myself.

“Well… My name is Alice. I… uh… study design technology and I love physics. Uh... That's about it.” Hannah seems satisfied and started talking about her favourite subject, music, and I, fascinated by the conversation, listened to Hannah talk passionately and proudly about it.

After around five minutes, Hannah offered to play one of her songs to me. I agreed out of curiosity, after listening to her talk so fervently about it. She pulled a well-kept acoustic guitar out of a bag she had slung on her back and started strumming. I had few words for what I experienced next. The tune of the guitar was soft and melodious, her lyrics completely betrayed her energetic behaviour and instantly struck me as heartfelt and showed me a glimpse at who Hannah was underneath, a warm, empathetic person.

As the song came to a close, Hannah turned back to me, after carefully putting her guitar away, and I immediately exploded with compliments and she started blushing.

“Thanks, I really appreciate it. Do you play an instrument?” she asked.

“I used to play piano at GCSE but haven't played in years. I wasn't that good, to be honest, nothing like you.” I replied. This caused Hannah to redden even more.

We lapsed into another silence until Hannah spotted another one of our roommates down the path. Charlotte was instantly recognisable, with her stunning, cinnamon red hair that flowed down over her shoulders and her faded, lilac ball cap that sat on top of her wavy hair. As she got closer, we realised that she looked worried and I could tell from a glance how shy she was.

“Hi, Charlotte. I'm Alice and this is Hannah.” I welcomed her and she visibly relaxed thanks to the friendly introduction.

“Hello.” She replied quietly. A silence followed the quick reply and we fell back into an awkward silence. I tried to break the ice by telling the two about myself.

“Well, I guess I'll tell you about myself first. I am a DT student, my favourite franchise is Star Wars and I love books.” I informed the two.

  
Hannah went next.

  
“I am a music student, my favourite franchise is RWBY and I live to devour cookies.” Hannah giggled after she said the last bit.  
Charlotte, nervously, said “I am a military history student, my favourite franchise is Total War and I love strategy games.”

Hannah immediately asked “Why did you choose military history?”

Charlotte, hesitant at first, answered “My dad was in the army and he introduced me to historical battles when I was a child. Instead of bedtime stories, he would tell me of the strategies of leaders like Caesar and Lawrence of Arabia. I grew up surrounded by the history and I loved it. I would lie awake at night and recount the stories in my head and analyse their strategies. It was because of this that I started the classes at A-Level and ended up here.”

Charlotte now looked completely relaxed and, for the next forty five minutes talked to Hannah about Lawrence of Arabia's tactics, with me joining in from time to time. It wasn't until then that I realised how late our fourth member was; she was almost an hour late and she hadn't been heard from. I gave Hannah and Charlotte my number so that they could contact me and went out to look for Katherine.

At first, I almost mistook Katherine for royalty, if it weren't for the flawless, snow white skin and long, midnight black hair from her photo, I wouldn't have thought she was my roommate. I was attracted by the noise of a helicopter and looked toward where the police were clearing a landing zone. It was then that I realised that I recognised Kat's last name; Regalia.

The Regalia family were in the top one percent of the top one percent, they owned most of the fortune five hundred and were the advisors to several world leaders. As she stepped off the helicopter, she recognised me and strolled over. She politely introduced herself with the most archetypical British accent I've ever heard.

“Hello, Alice. Please, don't let my family name change your attitude toward me. I would prefer it if you treat me the same as any other.”

  
“Of course, but why are you so late?” I asked, trying to be as polite as possible.  
“I am so sorry for making you wait, we were swarmed by paparazzi as soon as we stepped out of our house.” She answered coolly, as if it happened all the time.

  
“Well, I guess that must be really annoying. Would you like to meet your other two roommates? They are waiting.” I replied, not forgetting about Charlotte and Hannah.  
“Lead on, I can't wait to meet them.” She said excitedly.

As we walked toward the others, Katherine, or Kat as she preferred to be called, talked about how she has been looking forward to university because she could finally be treated normally, instead of like a prized doll being put on show. I fully sympathised with her and she seemed very comfortable with talking to me and kept asking me questions about my life.

I told her about my parents (an architect and a primary school teacher) and my experiences with our two other roommates. I, in turn, learnt about her subject, food technology, and her life: homeschooled by the most expensive private tutors, some sort of event every weekend, where she was put on show for the other rich families, and her desire to live a normal life, as opposed her father, who wants her to be his heir.

  
We met the other two and Kat and Hannah immediately hit it off, with Hannah bombarding her with questions and Kat, after answering, returning with questions of her own. I chatted with Charlotte a bit more and, whilst it was mainly about our favourite films, I managed to learn that her parents where both history lecturers in two different universities, thankfully not ours, and that she had, with some exceptions, the same tastes as me in films and music, and that we shared the same favourite musical artist. We, however, differed on favourite song. We all chatted for another hour and began to walk to the university.

That was when they came…

  
Note:  
Please leave a review if you enjoy or have any constructive criticism, like if you liked, self-explanatory, and favourite if you want. All support is appreciated and will help motivate me to continue this story. Bye for now!


	2. Green, Green Everywhere

Walking to the University, I noticed that there was a growing number of people around us. Most of the people looked like tourists looking around the shops or walking to the famous park which we’d just left. Hannah was skipping ahead occasionally stopping to look into a store window while Charlotte listened to Kat talk, seemingly reluctant to speak herself. As I thought about my new quirky friends, I looked up and saw the tall, romanesque bell tower that the university was famous for. We were only a few minutes away from the university where we could get to our rooms and put our bags down, as well as pick my suitcase that I’d sent ahead with most of my belongings. 

Suddenly, a brilliant light filled the sky as a thunderous boom attacked my ears. I felt my mind tear open as a piercing shriek filled my head and seemed to penetrate my very being as it screamed for my submission. I resisted and struggled against it as the shriek intensified and I almost fell due to the stress the sound put on me. 

Soon, the shriek subsided and I regained my footing as the light began to disappear and thousands of smooth, disc-like aircraft filled the air, like leaves in a forest. My heart sunk like lead, watching on as we were slowly hemmed in by a net of ships, surrounding the city, and dreading what was to come. 

The UFOs glowed with a sickly green light, which seemed to saturate the air, and gave off a resonant hum that seemed to reverberate around me. I looked over at the others and their nervous twitches and panicked expressions revealed that they were ready to run at the first sign of trouble. The UFOs hovered there, threateningly, layers upon layers of them, ready to pounce. And we, helplessly, waited. Everything was still, frozen, as if everyone in the city knew what would happen next; that this was the calm before the storm.   
The uneasy silence was broken by a woman’s shrill cry, that echoed through the otherwise silent city, that seemed to cause an explosion of activity as the eerie green colour intensified and everyone scattered, running for cover. 

I hastily grabbed Hannah, the closest person to me, and began to run toward the nearest building, an ancient-looking shop that looked like it sold antiques. Kat seemed to catch on, grabbing a shocked Charlotte and running after me. As soon as we got in the shop, the entire sky outside flashed with green light and glowing orbs, the same shade as the light, seemed to rain from the sky, exploding all around, burning everything they touched. 

My heart was beating so fast that I thought it would burst out of my chest. The smell of burning filled my nose and I tried to look away from the entrance as we hid behind the counter, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the burning corpses and the screaming people. I watched on, powerless, as hundreds of people's lives violently ended and saw their as they were hit by the orbs and collapsed, screaming in agony. 

I looked over at my roommates and saw they couldn't tear their eyes away either. I saw their terrified expressions as they watched the massacre outside, hoping that they wouldn't be next, wishing for it to end. 

I then noticed that Hannah wasn't looking and was focusing on drowning out the death and destruction outside. She had her eyes squeezed shut and had put earphones in and had music blaring through them as she attempted to block out the screams. I felt sorry for Hannah, the youngest here by almost a year, as she was much more vulnerable than the others and seemed much more upbeat. I put my arm around her, as we sat behind the counter waiting for the bombing to end, and she replied by resting her head on my shoulder and seemed to relax a bit, despite the  
horrors outside. 

My spirits lifted a bit at her reaction as she snuggled against me, like I used to with my sister, on cold winter nights. Hannah even offered to let me listen to her music with her, although I turned down her offer to give her the most protection against the sounds of the screams outside. Instead, I focused on my surroundings, careful to keep my head focused towards the back of the shop. 

From the sign above the counter I was leaning against, I confirmed this was an antiques store, ‘Ancient Andy’s Antiques’ to be precise. There didn’t seem to be a back door in the dark, wooden wall, from what I could tell, and display cabinets covered the wall, filled with small trinkets and one had a pristine 5th place certificate for the local antique store competition. 

After what felt like hours trapped in the store, listening to the explosions and accompanying screams, the firing suddenly stopped and a deafening silence filled the air. Cautiously, the other people hiding in the store, which I hadn’t noticed first, crept slowly toward the entrance, seeking relief from the cramped environment we were in. 

As they reached the entrance, their faces contorted with pain as they were struck with emerald lasers and fell, burnt, to the ground. We quickly ducked back behind the wooden counter as hulking, pink-skinned aliens landed on the ground, wearing bulky armour of a darker green colour, and began to search the store. We held our breath as they approached our hiding spots. We heard the screams of others through the thin walls between buildings as they were picked off by the aliens, one by one. 

I heard the deep, muffled breaths of one of the aliens approaching me and my heart skipped a beat. My mind was sent spinning at the thought that this was the point I would die, that I would have no future, no children, no impact on the world at all. I tensed as the moment neared and prepared to try to fight, determined for one last chance, a chance to survive. Adrenaline shot through my veins as my fight or flight reactions kicked in, the aliens close enough to smell.   
Just as I was about to fight, I heard a thundering sound, a cry from the alien standing right above me, and a thud as it slumped on the desk above me. This was followed by similar sounds until they suddenly stopped and someone shouted “If anyone is in here, come out slowly.” 

As soon as this was said, I got out from under the desk and saw our rescuers. The group were all wearing professional, black army uniform and all had matching Union Jacks on their left shoulders, with a skull and crossbones on the other. I looked over at Hannah to check on her and was greeted by her slim figure, asleep, where I had left her, head rolled to one side. I woke her up with a gentle nudge and she, adorably, yawned, took out her earphones and her face brightened as she noticed our rescuers. The soldier who seemed in charge walked up to us and explained that they were taking civilians to an evacuation centre further into the city and that we could escape from there. 

As the group prepared to leave, we separated from the soldiers and I asked the group “How are you all doing?”   
Kat, dismissively, replied “A bit shaken up but, otherwise, fine.” 

Charlotte, quietly, replied “With all that's going on, I'm okay. But, I can't stop thinking about what happened outside, those poor people...” 

With that, Hannah looked toward the entrance and her face darkened. For that brief moment, all her childhood innocence was lost and, in it’s place was anger, as she saw the destruction outside. Then, suddenly, she reverted back to her usual, childlike self. “Why would anyone want to do this?” she asked, rhetorically. 

With that in mind, we helped prepare the soldiers to leave, in silence. 

Before we left the store, the leader told us his name, Major Harris, “So you girls have something to call me, besides 'sir'.”, which I thought was appreciative of him. We then exited the shop and closely followed Harris, shocked at the devastation caused by the aliens and their bombardment. We had to climb over the charred corpses and the stench of death surrounded us, choking the air around us. I glanced at the others and saw Charlotte and Hannah talking to Harris with grim faces, probably learning the extent of the alien's attack. And, then, I saw Kat, green- faced, trying to skirt around the bodies and pinching her nose, trying to block out the smell. 

As we turned into a side street, a soldier appeared to spot something up ahead and the other soldiers went forward to investigate, leaving us with Harris and a couple of soldiers to keep watch. After a few minutes of the soldiers crowding around the source of interest, leaving me only glimpses, I got a look at what was catching the attention of all the soldiers; it was a hexagonal canister that was glowing a warm orange colour. The glow seemed to be caused by a dense, gooey liquid that made me feel safe and secure, despite my surroundings. I thought I heard something scurrying about as I stared at the canister and wondered how the object had gotten there. It was then that I realised. 

“It's a trap, get away!” I shouted, just before a blinding flash of green vaporised the soldiers standing closest to the object and green lasers erupted from in front of and behind us. Many if the soldiers were killed by the sudden attack and we were forced down a narrow alley that was filled with large bins and old, ruined cars. Blocked in by the aliens, we sprinted to the end of the alley and the soldiers, realising that it was a dead end, hunkered down, preparing to fight. I silently cursed at our luck and tried to think of ways to survive. My mind went into overdrive as the adrenaline kicked in, flooding my mind with ideas. I took cover behind one of the bins to escape the lasers and the continually weaker stream of gunfire. 

Realising that I was going to die, I decided that at least I'd die defending my friends. I grabbed a rifle of the corpse of one of the soldiers, slumped over, surrounded by a pool of blood, and started wildly firing at the source of one of the beams. The other girls followed my example, including Hannah, surprisingly, and started firing back at the attackers. Several satisfying screams responded to our hail of gunfire and became more frequent as time went on. As the remaining soldiers fell around us, we continued to fight back and, soon, it was only us four left against the swarm of aliens. Surprisingly, our ambushers where not the ones from the store but new grey, child sized aliens that could control that looked like purple wisps of energy in the air. 

Soon, the aliens had pushed to just a few metres from where we were shooting from and, just as we were about to get overrun, a sleek-looking aircraft, labelled Firebrand, dropped off four heavily armoured soldiers that started shooting the aliens in the back. They made short work of the aliens, who seemed surprised by the attack, and approached us with grim faces. I looked at our attackers’ bodies and saw that the soldiers were definitely skilled, having killed at least fifteen aliens. I looked back down the alley and saw the soldiers' bodies strewn across the alley, the smell of burning flesh filling the air. 

“What happened here?” asked one of the soldiers, trying to keep professional surrounded by the bloodshed. 

“We were traveling to an evacuation. centre with some of the military and were ambushed while they investigated a strange, glowing orange canister and, well, they all died and you saved us.” Kat replied, trying to copy the soldier's professional demeanour but her voice wavering due to the shock of the ambush and the amount of adrenaline pumping through our veins.   
I then noticed that one of the soldiers had sat down, obviously in pain, and tried, shakily, to patch himself up, although obviously incapable of doing it. I ran over, leaving the others to talk with the soldiers and tried to tend to the soldier's wound. I looked, first, what the soldier was trying to grab, a backpack just out of his reach. I opened the bag and found several magazines of ammunition and medical supplies. Using improvised first aid skills, based off my basic training required for design technology, I managed to get the soldier back on his feet. Luckily, as the aliens used lasers, the wound had been cauterised and so didn't bleed, which would have made the wound fatal. 

As I got back to the others, they had finished fully recounting the last few hours. The soldiers, all looking sympathetic, turned to privately converse with each other and, after a few minutes, turned back to us and the leading soldier, the first one to speak with us, asked us, almost rhetorically, if we wanted to wait for them in the 'Skyranger'. An instant, unanimous “yes” resounded from our mouths and we clambered into the well-lit seating area of the 'Skyranger'. 

As soon as we were strapped into the seats that lined the edges of the aircraft, the floor seemed to lurch as we rapidly rose up, my ears popping as we ascended. 

As I settled in, a voice from the intercom made me jump in surprise when it said “Hello, this is your captain speaking. Thank you for flying Blue Sky Airlines, with your captain, Blue Sky. Make yourselves comfortable; we will be here for a few hours before returning to base.” 

After 30 seconds of silence, Hannah seemed to grow uncomfortable and started fidgeting. She played with what she could of her hair, twirling it between her fingers and constantly brushing her fringe out of her eyes, and tapping, rather annoyingly, on the side of her chair. It really got on my nerves, having been relishing in the silence, but I let her continue, understanding that it was probably just her trying to de-stress after what all that had happened today. She, soon, rested her head on my shoulder and I could hear her soft breathing. Her slow, deep breaths, oddly, calmed me and gave me the sort of comfort I've only really ever felt with my sister. The feeling made me remember a night with my sister, around a year ago. 

I was in my bed, unable to sleep, waiting for morning to come. I, then, heard a small whisper. “pssst!” I heard it say and I looked toward the source of the noise and saw my sister's colourful, fun-loving face, the golden flecks in her emerald eyes shining in the darkness. She motioned me to follow her and snuck out the room. I, curious, followed and found that I was led to the roof. 

When I got on the roof, I saw Beth lying on her back, staring, longingly, at the stars. I joined her, trying to not to interrupt her thoughts. The night sky was surreal. The stars glittered and sparkled like glitter on a canvas; the usually black night sky was set ablaze with shades of fiery red with sunset orange with shades of lilac and blue bled in. Absorbed in the picturesque view, we lay together for what seemed like hours, in a silence, comforted by each other's company. The silence seemed to create a calm, freeing atmosphere that made me feel warm and fuzzy relaxing me as I shared this beautiful moment with Beth, side by side, wishing this moment would never end. 

A hushed “Alice,” jogged me out of the pleasant memory. I saw that it was Charlotte that said it. 

Careful to not wake Hannah, who now had her head on my lap, I whispered back “Yeah?” 

“What do you think is going to happen now?” she asked, almost inaudibly. 

Truthfully, I answered “I don't know. I guess we'll just have to wait.” She didn't seem to like the answer but it also seemed to be the answer she'd expected. 

I, then, shifted, as much as I could with Hannah's head on my lap, into a more comfortable position and willed myself to fall asleep and, miraculously, I did.


	3. The Waiting Game

I woke up, suddenly, as the entire craft shook violently. 

"Don’t panic” I heard the intercom crackle “It's just turbulence.” 

Looking around, I noticed, through the dishevelled faces and messed-up hair of my new friends, that we had all been woken up from sleep. Hannah got up from my lap and yawned, still half-asleep. She looked around slowly, seemingly a bit confused at where she was.   
When she saw me and realised that she had had her head on my lap, she reddened, smiling sheepishly, and I smiled reassuringly. Her face brightened considerably and she hummed a fun melody as she busied herself with something in her bag. 

It was because of this that I remembered about my bag, still across my shoulder, resting on the empty seat next to me. It’s worn, leather exterior covered in scratches that contrast against the black of the bag, each scratch bringing a warm rush of nostalgia as good memories flood my mind. 

Hannah’s bag, on the other hand, was a winter white backpack, covered in colourful badges, seeming to denote various franchises. I recognised the names of several bands on Hannah's bag. 

I was glad that we were going to go to the dorm after meeting because it meant we all had some of our bags with us. However, I had left most of my bags in a storage unit, so I only had a spare change of clothes, some stationary, my sketchbook, a drink and some snacks. My shoulder bag was bulging with the amount is was carrying and I silently hoped that I hadn’t broken it, realising that this was all that remained of my possessions. 

Soon, Blue Sky announced that we were going to land and pick up the others. After hearing this, we all strapped back into the seats and waited. 

After going down, which is the same sickening experience as going up, the ramp descended and let us see the true extent of the destruction. The entire city seemed to be covered in flame; the smoke was so dense that, although it could only be midday, it blocked out the sun, leaving the city coated in a dancing, amber light from the fires. All you could hear was terrified screams and gunshots, alien and human alike. 

“How are we meant to find them in all of this?” asked Charlotte, hanging her head. Hannah was frantically searching for them, obviously distressed at the thought of losing them too. I heard a faint shout and immediately perked up. Kat also seemed to hear it and seemed to zero in on the direction. I followed her gaze and saw some foggy silhouettes which I couldn't quite make out. 

However, Kat seemed to have much better vision than me and immediately stated “It's them! But they seem to have an extra person. Sky, do you see them?” 

“Yes, I do! Hold on, I'm going to land for them!” Blue Sky replied, in his archetypical Australian accent. 

I barely kept myself from falling out of the 'Skyranger' as we hurtled towards the ground and landed just ahead of the soldiers. As they clambered aboard, we inspected the fifth member of the group, who seemed to be another civilian. He looked shaken, like how I imagine we looked boarding and his long dark brown hair was covered in sweat and his chocolaty brown eyes were filled with fear. He sat down next to where I been sitting and strapped himself in. That reminded me to do that as well and I sat down again, just before we rapidly ascended and the ramp closed. 

As they settled in, the soldiers talking amongst themselves putting as much space between us and then so we couldn't hear them. The boy, on the other hand, was forced closer to us due to the soldiers' desire for privacy. 

After a while, he seemed to calm down and looked increasingly uncomfortable. I, being next to him, asked “Claustrophobic?” He nodded. “Me and my sister are too. But, for me, I mainly get claustrophobic in crowds.” 

“Is she your sister?” He said quietly, pointing to Hannah, who was laughing with Charlotte and Kat. 

“No, my sister is in America. She moved away a while ago. Why did you think she was my sister?” I responded, curious. 

“The way you look at each other makes it seem like you are. You seem to be very close” He replied, as if it where obvious. 

“I only met her today, about an hour before the attack.” I informed him and then recounted the day. He was a good listener and didn't interrupt. 

After I finished, he said “You’re lucky.” His face darkened as he said this and I immediately felt sorry for bringing the attack up. 

“You don't have to tell me what happened if you aren't ready.” I said, after a small silence. 

He looked very grateful and replied “Thank you for understanding.” 

I was then tapped on the shoulder by Charlotte and I turned around to see the soldiers had turned back towards us, Hannah and Kat staring at them, their eyes filled with anticipation. 

“We will be arriving at the base soon. Please, stay close. We will be taking you through the complex to the commander’s office to let him decide what to do with you.” 

All of a sudden, the whole craft lurched down as we descended. And, I heard the sound of the engines powering down as we landed. 

The ramp opened and revealed a giant underground room, filled with people in uniforms running around, more crafts like the Skyranger on the many landing pads that littered the cavern and machines so high-tech that even I, someone who kept up to date with the newest technologies, only knew a few. 

Overwhelmed by the shear enormity of the cavern, all five of us fell behind and ran to catch up with the soldiers who, under their professional demeanour, looked relieved to be here, as if they were returning home. 

We passed through a set of smooth metal doors and continues to walk through a labyrinth of endless, metallic walls, occasionally passing labs, workshops and rooms I could only guess the function. 

We eventually reached what looked like a lift. It was quite spacious but, having to accommodate all ten of us, we all had to squash together. There was an uncomfortable silence as the doors closed and the calming elevator music started to play. 

When we reached the top, we all but burst out of the lift, desperate to escape the cramped space. I looked over at the boy and felt sorry for him, remembering his claustrophobia, along with being squashed against nine complete strangers, and then I realised that I had never asked his name and never given him mine, I decided to ask after the meeting with the commander.   
I looked around the room and noticed it was completely different to the rest of the base. It's walls looked like wood, though I guessed there was metal behind it. The furniture looked like it belonged in a rich man's study with giant leather armchairs and towering bookshelves filled with books. It was then that I noticed the commander, feet on the desk, smiling cheerfully at us. 

“I hope you don't mind the furniture. I didn't decorate it, my father did. But, anyway, take a seat and you can explain what happened.” Everyone looked surprised, most of all the soldiers and took a seat in the many armchairs in the room. 

After an hour, we had finally finished recounting what had happened during the attack, first the soldiers then me with the others chiming in when appropriate. 

The commander turned to the boy, who looked very worried, and said “Don't worry, I understand.” and turned back to address us. “From the captain's account, you four did well making a stand, something, truthfully, that I could us here. So, I would like to invite you to train to be the newest squad here. The training is tough but it will train you to work together to fight the alien threat and help protect earth as it's first and last line of defence. You are free to join them,” he said turning to the boy. “What do you say?”

I turned to everyone else, who looked captivated by the commander’s words and I knew what our answer was. “We’ll do it!” I said, excited at this new opportunity.   
“I will too.” said the boy quietly and the commander looked satisfied. 

“Then, captain, take them to their new living quarters and start their training tomorrow, you are in charge of them.” The captain nodded and got up, along with the other soldiers. 

We also got up and, as we walked away, I turned around and asked “Sir, what should we call you?”   
He simply replied “the Commander... with a capital C. I'm sorry but I can't tell you my real name, comes with the job.” 

I walked into the lift with everyone else and, as the doors closed, I heard the Commander say “Welcome to XCOM!”


	4. Settling in

In the lift, the air was filled with a tangible excitement. Though we were all silent, we knew what we were all thinking. Time for a new life, albeit under less than favourable circumstances. 

Although I was bursting with questions for the captain, they could be answered tomorrow, all I needed was a hot shower and a soft bed. 

As the lift doors slid open, we were led back through the labyrinth of rooms and soon came to a long corridor with the same monochromatic colour scheme as the rest of the complex, only this one had a splashes of colour on all the doors that lined it, the signs. Each door had a piece of card with a name, presumably denoting different squads, and a logo. The logos ranged from what looked like an art student’s doodles to just a stylized name. 

The captain stopped when he came to the only plain, ordinary door. It was opened with the swipe of a card and hissed as it slowly opened. “I'll be in that room if you need me,” he said, with a weary hand wave to a room a few doors down, “I'll meet you out here at 0600 for breakfast. And, from now on, unless we are in a formal situation, call me Jack.” And, with that, he opened his door and went inside, closing the door behind him, a hearty cheer erupting from the room. 

As I slowly entered the room, I admired how...well...homey it was. There were two brand new pastel armchairs against the right wall, one yellow and one sky blue. Opposite these was a large three-seated sofa that was a pastel green. There were also 3 bunk beds lined up against the far wall. A light brown coffee table, with bright and colourful placemats stacked in the middle. 

A door led off either side of the room. The one on the left seemed to lead off into a bathroom and the other accommodated what look like a very small room of cupboards with just enough room for a kettle, a toaster, a microwave and a small fridge. 

Suddenly, I heard a happy squeal from behind me and I was knocked a little from where Hannah had hurriedly run past and jumped excitedly onto one of the beds, seeming to enjoy curling up on it and feeling it out. 

Kat, despite her aristocratic upbringing, followed suit, though more carefully, and sat on one if the colourful armchairs. 

Charlotte quietly tried to get past me without physical contact, until I noticed her and allowed her to sidle past with a knowing smile, and she sat on the other armchair, cautiously making sure to keep it as clean as possible. 

While everyone else settled in, I turned to the boy and said, apologetically “Sorry, I forgot to mention: I'm Alice!” 

“Adam.” He responded happily, “Sorry for my silence earlier. You seem really kind and caring, I was just a bit shaken up.” 

“Don't worry. I understand.” I replied. And with that, we both walked into the room and sat on the soft sofa.   
“OK. First off: Adam, everyone; everyone, Adam” I start, with a quick gesture to Adam. 

Hannah, now lying on her stomach, looked at Adam curiously “Nice to meet you. I'm Hannah.” 

“Wait. Hannah Crayla? From Almerton?” Adam looked surprised. 

“The very same.” Hannah replied, amazement written across her face. “How do you know my name?” 

“A few months ago, I performed against you at the County Music Festival.” Adam explained, looking at Hannah, her face brightening. 

“Oh, I remember you now!” she said excitedly, “You were that amazing singer who sang...oh...what did you sing?” 

“Earth by Sleeping At Last.” He replied, with a smile, “You performed your own song, didn't you? It was brilliant! You definitely deserved that win!” 

“Well...um...thanks!” Hannah replied, her cheeks turning red. 

“I'm Kat!” Kat told Adam, continuing the introductions.   
“I'm Charlotte.” Charlotte said, shyly. 

“Very nice to meet you both.” Adam curtly replied.   
“So, who wants what bed?” I asked. 

Hannah immediately cuddled her pillow cutely and said “Mine!”, giggling. 

“I'm going to take this one.” Kat said, walking over to the far left bottom bunk. 

“If you don't mind, I'd like to take this one.” Charlotte politely said, standing next to the top bunk of Kat's bed.   
“If you want to go with Hannah, I'll take the one on the right.” Adam said. I nodded and put my bag on the bed, Hannah beaming happily at me. 

Then, I noticed a door behind each bed and found they were tall, thin wardrobes and found loads of clothes, for all sizes. There were jackets, leggings, sweaters, jeans and loads more. The wardrobe was a colourful rainbow of clothes, not what I was expecting. However, then I thought of The Commander and thought that he seemed the sort of person that wouldn't enforce a uniform policy. 

Hannah looked over and saw the array of clothes and, after a short gasp, raced to the wardrobe, grabbed the most colourful sleepwear and then ran into the bathroom yelling “First shower!” back at us with an enormous grin. 

As the door slammed closed, I couldn't help but laugh at Hannah's enthusiasm.   
After around two hours of small talk and taking turns to shower, the day ended with all of us, exhausted from recent events, near enough collapsing into our beds, sleep taking us quickly.


	5. Homely Things

“Elesdror!” a deep, echoing voice bellowed. My mind snapped into a state of alert as I found myself floating in an emptiness that seemed to stretch on forever, filled with the commanding voice, the void flashing a deep, oppressive purple as he spoke, emphasising every syllable. 

The voice continued, “We will hunt you down. One day, you will no longer be able to run and we will make an example of you like we did your father.” 

It was then that I noticed, far away, another figure, a small blot in the vast emptiness. The figure seemed to be surrounded in a thin layer if the same purple light. 

“NO!” I heard a young male scream. The light then exploded outwards like a wave slowly quickly approaching. “What you did to my father was unspeakable and, although you promise this fate for me, know I won't run any longer, you will regret ever setting foot on Earth and threatening me or my family.” 

And with that, the light engulfed me and I woke up sprawled across the bed in a cold sweat. 

“What a weird dream. It felt so real.” I thought, confused. I looked over at the small digital clock on the wall above the entrance, casting a dull blue glow over the room. It read 2:14. “Well, there's no way in getting back to sleep after that. Another shower might be a good idea though.” I decided, looking over at the slightly ajar door. 

Still half asleep, I wandered over to the bathroom door, banging my knee on the low coffee table on the way with a stifled squeal. I slowly pried the bathroom door open and darted in, pulling the door shut gently once I was through. 

Wide awake after the incident with the coffee table, I grabbed the same bottles from last night, the coconut set, as if it were already routine and turned on the shower, setting it to a comfortable temperature, hot enough to feel it but not enough to hurt. The shower, as it had last night, felt amazing; the soft pitter-patter of the droplets on my skin, the sweet, aromatic smell of the shampoo, the warm feeling that comes with being clean. 

After the shower, I dried myself and snuck through the main room again and silently opened the wardrobe. From amidst the colourful array of clothes, I picked out a simple, lilac long-sleeved t-shirt and a pair of slim denim jeans. As a chill crept up my arm, I decided to also pick out a pale red jumper that was very slightly too big but allowed me to hide my hands in my sleeves, keeping them warm. 

After getting changed and putting my dirty clothes in one of the cupboards in the side room, I began reading the labels, curious as to why there were so many. One particular label caught my eye, it read “Books”. It was a fairly big cupboard and I eagerly opened in, despite expecting non-fiction. I found several types of books: non-fiction, classics, sci-fi, historical fiction and even Harry Potter. 

As soon as I saw Harry Potter, I grabbed the first book and rushed to curl up on one of the armchairs and turn on a small reading light I'd found in the cupboard.   
After around 2 hours, I checked the clock again and it was 4:30. 

“Time for the hard part.” I sighed. I kept turning my gaze between the lying figures, formulating the least awkward me to wake them up, while not making much noise so that it didn't travel into different rooms. I spent a good 5 minutes tossing around ideas including just speaking them, throwing pillows and a complicated arrangement of mirrors from the bathroom to wake them all up. 

That was until I was interrupted by three loud, hollow knocks on the door. The others sleepily began to wake up while I walked to the door and opened it. Jack was already walking back to his room, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt and just said “Good morning, Alice.“ before closing the door without letting me reply. 

I closed the door, confused but smiling, and adopted my cosy reading position once again. As I read, I was vaguely aware of others around me as I absorbed myself in the story and I must have dozed off as I next remember being jogged awake by Kat so we could leave. 

Not wanting to be late on the first day, I left the book on the chair and all but ran out of the room I accidentally bumped into a surprised Charlotte who was caught by Adam before she could fall over. I quickly apologised, embarrassed, before Jack came out of his room in some worn jeans and a red t-shirt. 

“Nice to you all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed!” Jack started, “If you ask a question, I’ll answer truthfully and to the best of my knowledge. Now, stick close, follow me and don’t wander off. This place can be like a maze.” With that, he turned on his heels and started down the hallway. We, surprised at how...animated...he was, ran to catch up. 

As we walked, I, almost rhetorically, asked “Is this place supposed to be a maze?” 

“Yes,” Jack answered “This base was specifically designed to confuse any attackers in the event this base is compromised.” Then, before I could ask my follow-up question, he continued with a chuckle at my expression “Yes, we give you a map to start.” 

I had a want, a need, to ask more questions, to understand more and make everything seem more real. Everything felt so wrong. I was just normal, never anything extraordinary or different. However, I had too many questions. I was paralysed with choice, walking in silence beside Jack. I was unable to voice my thoughts, trapped inside my mind. 

I was stopped by Jack’s arm outstretched in front of me as I almost crashed into a set of metallic grey double doors. “Try not to zone out during training, Alice. I’d hate to have to explain to the Commander why one of my charges was killed one the first day.” Jack said while he turned to me with a warm, joking smile. He then opened the heavy doors with the swipe of a card, holding them open whilst motioning for us to enter the surprisingly still room. “Ah, yes. No one’s here yet. Gives us more privacy,”Jack commented. “Anyway, now we eat. I’m sure you’re hungry.”


End file.
